Surgical robotic system and control of surgical robotic system

ABSTRACT

Some embodiments are directed to a surgical robotic system for use in a surgical procedure, including a surgical arm having a movable arm part for mounting of a surgical instrument having at least one degree-of-freedom to enable longitudinal movement of the surgical instrument towards a surgical target. Some other embodiments are directed to a human machine interface for receiving positioning commands from a human operator for controlling the longitudinal movement of the surgical instrument, and an actuator configured for actuating the movable arm part to effect the longitudinal movement of the surgical instrument, and controlled by a processor in accordance with the positioning commands and a virtual bound. The virtual bound establishes a transition in the control of the longitudinal movement of the surgical instrument in a direction towards the surgical target. The virtual bound is determined, during use of the surgical robotic system, based on the positioning commands.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application is a U.S. National Phase filing under 35 C.F.R. § 371of, and claims priority to, International PCT Patent Application No.:PCT/EP2015/069372, filed on Aug. 24, 2015, which claims priority toNetherlands Patent Application No.: 2013369, filed on Aug. 26, 2014, thecontents of each of which are hereby incorporated in their entireties byreference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The invention relates to a surgical robotic system for use in a surgicalprocedure. The invention further relates to a method for controlling asurgical robotic system during use in a surgical procedure, and to acomputer program product comprising instructions for causing a processorsystem to perform the method.

BACKGROUND ART

Surgical procedures increasingly involve the use of surgical roboticsystems. Rather than operating entirely autonomously, such surgicalrobotic systems are typically at least in part under the control of ahuman operator, for example, to control the movement of a surgicalinstrument mounted to a surgical arm of the surgical robotic system. Assuch, surgical robotic systems may assist the human operator inperforming a surgical procedure.

For that purpose, a surgical robotic system may be provided with asurgical arm which comprises a movable arm part, with the movable armpart comprising an instrument connector for mounting of a surgicalinstrument. Accordingly, the surgical instrument may be positioned bythe surgical arm. A human machine interface may be provided forreceiving positioning commands from a human operator for controlling themovement of the surgical instrument. An actuator may be provided foractuating the movable arm part to effect the movement of the surgicalinstrument in accordance with the positioning commands provided by thehuman operator. Examples of this approach may be found in the field oftele-operation, where a human operator may operate a master device,e.g., a motion controller, to provide positioning commands for a slavedevice, e.g., the aforementioned surgical arm.

Surgical robotic systems of the above type are known per se.

For example, US2013338679 A1 describes a surgical robot for performingminimally invasive surgery, comprising a surgical arm, wherein saidsurgical arm has a fixed surgical arm part and a movable surgical armpart which is movable with respect to said fixed surgical arm part. Thesurgical arm further comprises a surgical instrument mounted at saidmovable arm part. A manipulation arm is pivotally engaged with thesecond engagement point of the fixed surgical arm part using one end ofthe manipulation arm. It is said that a manipulation control and drivingmeans could be used for controlling the manipulation arm.

The movement of the surgical instrument may be in a longitudinaldirection, e.g., along the longitudinal axis of the surgical instrument.This direction is also referred to as the longitudinal axial direction,or in short the axial direction. Such longitudinal movement allows thesurgical instrument to be moved towards a surgical target within aninterior, or on a surface of an exterior of a patient. Accordingly, thesurgical instrument may be used to modify (biological) tissue near thesurgical target, to deliver an agent to the surgical target, etc.Examples of such surgical instruments include, but are not limited to,forceps, mechanical cutters, coagulation cutters, scissors, injectionneedles, sealing devices, etc.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

A problem of the longitudinal movement of a surgical instrument towardsa surgical target is that such movement, when insufficiently controlled,may pose a risk. For example, if a surgical target is located on asurface of an organ, an uncontrolled movement towards the surgicaltarget may accidentally puncture the surface.

One of the objects of the invention is to obtain a surgical roboticsystem and/or method for controlling a surgical robotic system whichenables the longitudinal movement of a surgical instrument which ismounted to the surgical robotic system to be better controlled.

A first aspect of the invention provides a surgical robotic system foruse in a surgical procedure, comprising:

-   -   a surgical arm comprising a movable arm part, the movable arm        part comprising an instrument connector for mounting of a        surgical instrument, the surgical instrument having a        longitudinal axis, the movable arm part having at least one        degree-of-freedom to enable longitudinal movement of the        surgical instrument along the longitudinal axis of the surgical        instrument towards a surgical target;    -   a human machine interface for receiving positioning commands        from a human operator for controlling the longitudinal movement        of the surgical instrument;    -   an actuator configured and arranged for actuating the movable        arm part to effect the longitudinal movement of the surgical        instrument;    -   a processor configured for controlling the actuator in        accordance with the positioning commands and a virtual bound,        the virtual bound establishing a transition in the control of        the longitudinal movement of the surgical instrument in a        direction towards the surgical target, and wherein the processor        is further configured for, during use, determining the virtual        bound based on the positioning commands.

In a further aspect of the invention, a method is provided forcontrolling a surgical robotic system during use in a surgicalprocedure, the surgical robotic system comprising a surgical arm, thesurgical arm comprising a movable arm part, the movable arm partcomprising an instrument connector for mounting of a surgicalinstrument, the surgical instrument having a longitudinal axis, themovable arm part having at least one degree-of-freedom to enablelongitudinal movement of the surgical instrument along the longitudinalaxis of the surgical instrument towards a surgical target, the methodcomprising:

-   -   receiving positioning commands from a human operator for        controlling the longitudinal movement of the surgical        instrument;    -   actuating the movable arm part to effect the longitudinal        movement of the surgical instrument;    -   controlling said actuating in accordance with the positioning        commands and a virtual bound, the virtual bound establishing a        transition in the control of the longitudinal movement of the        surgical instrument in a direction towards the surgical target;

the method further comprising:

-   -   during use of the surgical robotic system in the surgical        procedure, determining the virtual bound based on the        positioning commands.

In a further aspect of the invention, a computer program product isprovided comprising instructions for causing a processor system toperform the method.

The above aspects of the invention involve a surgical robotic systemwhich comprises a surgical arm. The surgical arm comprises a movable armpart, with the movable arm part comprising an instrument connector formounting of a surgical instrument. The surgical instrument has alongitudinal axis, typically passing through a tip of the surgicalinstrument. The movable arm part has at least one Degree-of-Freedom(DoF) to enable longitudinal movement of the surgical instrument alongthe longitudinal axis of the surgical instrument towards a surgicaltarget. It is noted that the movable arm part may have exactly one DoFaligned with the longitudinal axis of the surgical instrument to enablesaid longitudinal movement. However, the movable arm part may also havemultiple DoFs enabling said longitudinal movement yet without any of theDoFs having to be individually aligned with the longitudinal axis. It isnoted that surgical arms having the functionality described in thisparagraph are known per se from the field of medical robotics, and alsoknown as instrument manipulators, robotic arms, surgical robot slavedevices, etc.

A human machine interface is provided for receiving positioning commandsfrom a human operator for controlling the longitudinal movement of thesurgical instrument. In addition, an actuator is provided for actuatingthe movable arm part to effect the longitudinal movement of the surgicalinstrument. Another term for actuator is driving mechanism.

A processor is provided for controlling the actuator in accordance withthe positioning commands. As such, the processor may control theactuation of the movable arm part based on the positioning commands, forexample, to effect a desired longitudinal movement of the surgicalinstrument as indicated by the positioning commands. However, theprocessor may adjust the control of the actuator based on a virtualbound. Namely, the virtual bound may establish a transition in thecontrol of the longitudinal movement of the surgical instrument in adirection towards the surgical target. Here, the term ‘virtual bound’may refer to a data representation of a bound in physical space, e.g., aposition, a line or a contour. Moreover, the term ‘longitudinal movementtowards the surgical target’ refers to an advancing movement of thesurgical instrument rather than a retracting movement of the surgicalinstrument, and as such, refers to a movement in the general directionof the surgical target. The virtual bound may cause the processor totransition in control behavior when crossing the virtual bound, and maythereby effectively serve to divide physical space, e.g., the workspaceof the surgical robotic system, in different zones. For example, thevirtual bound may divide the physical space in a first zone and a secondzone, with the second zone comprising the surgical target, which may beassociated with a higher risk. The processor may control the actuatordifferently for positioning commands representing longitudinal movementof the surgical instrument in, and/or in the direction of, the secondzone than those representing longitudinal movement in, and/or in thedirection of, the first zone.

The processor determines the virtual bound based on the positioningcommands during use of the surgical robotic system. As such, the virtualbound may be determined at least in part by the human operator itself,namely from positioning commands which the human operator provides forcontrolling the longitudinal movement of the surgical instrument.

By applying a virtual bound in the above described manner, the humanoperator may be provided with safer and/or more accurate control overthe surgical instrument in the vicinity of a surgical target.Conversely, away from the surgical target, the safer and/or moreaccurate control may be deliberately dispensed with to allow fastermovement of the surgical instrument. For example, the virtual bound maybe used to disallow or dampen longitudinal movement of the surgicalinstrument towards the surgical target past the virtual bound. At thesame time, the inventors have recognized that there is a need todetermine the virtual bound without necessarily having to rely on sensordata which is indicative of a distance towards the surgical target.Namely, the surgical robotic system may lack such a sensor, or if asensor is provided, the sensor data may not always be reliable, etc.However, the inventors have recognized that the positioning commandsprovided by the human operator are indicative of where a virtual boundis to be suitably (re)positioned. As such, the control behavior of thehuman operator, as represented by the positioning commands, may be usedin determining the position of the virtual bound. Advantageously, it isnot needed to rely on sensor data, or sensor data alone, to determine avirtual bound. Rather, the processor may determine the virtual boundbased on the positioning commands.

Optionally, the processor may be configured for i) in controlling theactuator, allowing longitudinal movement of the surgical instrumenttowards the surgical target past the virtual bound, subject to apositioning command being of a selected type, and ii) updating thevirtual bound based on a new furthest positioning of the surgicalinstrument. For example, certain types of positioning commands may beconsidered ‘safe’ and thereby may cause the processor to, in addition tolongitudinally moving the surgical instrument, also re-position thevirtual bound. For example, positioning commands provided using aparticular input modality or input mode may be considered as ‘safe’ or‘safer’ than positioning commands provided using other input modalitiesor input modes. Here, the term ‘furthest positioning’ refers to apositioning that is considered to by the processor to represent afurthest positioning in accordance with a function. The function maydefine a virtual volume, with the positioning of the surgicalinstrument, as determined based from, e.g., the positioning commands,determining a size of the virtual volume, and the furthest positioningbeing the one which maximizes the size of the virtual volume. Thevirtual volume may have a predetermined geometry, e.g., corresponding tothe general shape of the anatomical structure which comprises thesurgical target.

Optionally, the processor may be configured for controlling the actuatorto always allow longitudinal movement of the surgical instrument awayfrom the surgical target. Such longitudinal movement may be consideredas ‘safe’ and thus generally allowed.

It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that two or more ofthe above-mentioned embodiments, implementations, and/or aspects of theinvention may be combined in any way deemed useful.

Modifications and variations of the method and/or the computer programproduct, which correspond to the described modifications and variationsof the surgical robotic system, can be carried out by a person skilledin the art on the basis of the present description.

The invention is defined in the independent claims or clauses.Advantageous yet optional embodiments are defined in the dependentclaims or clauses.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

These and other aspects of the invention are apparent from and will beelucidated with reference to the embodiments described hereinafter. Inthe drawings,

FIG. 1 shows a schematic representation of a surgical robotic system;

FIG. 2 shows a surgical instrument passing through a trocar duringminimally invasive surgery, the surgical instrument having four DoFs;

FIG. 3 shows a joint diagram illustrating the kinematics of a movablearm part of a surgical arm for use in minimally invasive surgery;

FIG. 4 shows a joint diagram illustrating the kinematics of a motioncontroller;

FIG. 5 shows a joint diagram illustrating the kinematics of a surgicalarm having six revolutionary DoFs, thereby enabling a remote center ofmotion and a longitudinal movement of the surgical instrument towards asurgical target;

FIG. 6 shows a joint diagram illustrating the kinematics of a surgicalarm in relation to a surgical target which may be located on an exteriorof a patient;

FIG. 7 shows a spherical virtual bound being determined based on afurthest positioning of the surgical instrument as established by ahuman operator during surgery on a surface of an exterior of a patient;

FIG. 8 shows a spherical virtual bound being determined based on afurthest positioning of the surgical instrument as established by ahuman operator during minimally invasive surgery in a cavity of an organin an interior of the patient;

FIG. 9 shows a planar virtual bound;

FIG. 10 illustrates the use of a spherical virtual bound during eyesurgery;

FIG. 11 shows the virtual bound being determined by an ellipsoid beingfitted to multiple data points representing instrument positioningcoordinates;

FIG. 12 illustrates a numerical model for the virtual bound beingobtained by multiple data points being connected;

FIG. 13 shows the virtual bound being moved in a step-wise manner;

FIG. 14 shows a motion controller operating in a positioning mode;

FIG. 15 shows a motion controller operating in a velocity mode;

FIG. 16 illustrates longitudinal movement of the surgical instrumenttowards the surgical target past the virtual bound being disallowed inthe velocity mode;

FIG. 17 shows the virtual bound being used in a scaling function;

FIG. 18 shows the virtual bound being used in a function that determinesthe desired instrument velocity in a velocity mode of the motioncontroller;

FIG. 19 shows the virtual bound being used in a frequency filter;

FIG. 20 shows the surgical instrument being retracted whennon-longitudinal movement of the instrument causes the instrument toarrive at the virtual bound;

FIG. 21 shows the virtual bound being updated or replaced, based onsensor data indicating a distance to the surgical target;

FIG. 22 schematically shows a method for controlling a surgical roboticsystem during use in a surgical procedure; and

FIG. 23 shows a computer program product comprising instructions forcausing a processor system to perform the method.

It should be noted that items which have the same reference numbers indifferent figures, have the same structural features and the samefunctions, or are the same signals. Where the function and/or structureof such an item has been explained, there is no necessity for repeatedexplanation thereof in the detailed description.

LIST OF REFERENCE NUMERALS

The following list of reference numerals is provided for aiding theinterpretation of the drawings and shall not be construed as limitingthe claims or clauses.

-   -   020 Human machine interface    -   022 Positioning commands    -   040 Processor    -   042 Actuation commands    -   060 Actuator    -   062 Actuation of surgical arm    -   080 Surgical arm    -   082 Movable arm part    -   100 Surgical robotic system    -   101 {right arrow over (e)}₁, axis of a Cartesian coordinate        system    -   102 {right arrow over (e)}_(y), axis of a Cartesian coordinate        system    -   103 {right arrow over (e)}_(z), axis of a Cartesian coordinate        system    -   104 {right arrow over (e)}_(x), axis of coordinate system fixed        to the instrument tip, orthogonal to the instrument longitudinal        axis    -   105 {right arrow over (e)}_(y), axis of coordinate system fixed        to the instrument tip, orthogonal to the instrument longitudinal        axis    -   106 {right arrow over (e)}_(z), axis of a Cartesian coordinate        system, aligned with the instrument longitudinal axis    -   107 ϕ, rotation of surgical instrument, laterally displacing its        tip    -   108 ψ, rotation of surgical instrument, laterally displacing its        tip    -   109 z, longitudinal (along its longitudinal axis) translation of        surgical instrument, or penetration direction, or advancing        direction    -   110 θ, rotation of surgical instrument around its longitudinal        axis    -   111 Φ, rotational DoF of a movable arm part    -   112 Ψ, rotational DoF of a movable arm part    -   113 Z, translational DoF of a movable arm part    -   114 Θ, rotational DoF of a movable arm part    -   115 Φ_(m), rotational DoF of motion controller    -   116 Ψ_(m), rotational DoF of motion controller    -   117 Z_(m), translational DoF of motion controller    -   118 Θ_(m), rotational DoF of motion controller    -   119 Surgical instrument    -   120 Data points    -   121 Algebraic geometry for the virtual bound    -   122 Surgical instrument tip    -   123 Surgical target    -   124 Trocar    -   125 Remote center of motion (RCM)    -   126 Button on motion controller gripper    -   127 Repositioning, expansion or deformation of the virtual bound    -   128 Radius R    -   129 Length L    -   130 ϕ=0 line    -   131 Microscope for vision through pupil    -   132 Virtual bound    -   133 Virtual bound at time t₁    -   134 Virtual bound at time t₂    -   135 Virtual bound at time t₃    -   136 Instrument tip at time t₁    -   137 Instrument tip at time t₂    -   138 Instrument tip at time t₃    -   139 Zone A    -   140 Zone B    -   143 Zone B at time t₂    -   146 Motion controller    -   147 Motion controller at time t₁    -   148 Motion controller at time t₂    -   149 Motion controller gripper    -   151 Increase virtual bound with 50 μm using foot pedal    -   152 Motion controller displacement x_(m)    -   153 Surgical instrument displacement x_(s)    -   154 Velocity mode boundary    -   156 Motion controller workspace    -   157 Pushing of the motion controller past the velocity mode        boundary    -   158 Zone of no velocity mode    -   161 Retract of surgical instrument; longitudinal translation in        negative z direction    -   162 Radius R₁ at time t₁    -   163 Radius R₂ at time t₂    -   164 Surgical instrument velocity v_(s)    -   166 Longitudinal distance to virtual bound    -   167 Scaling function 1 for α    -   168 Scaling function 2    -   169 Cut-off frequency (Hz)    -   170 Retraction instrument in z direction    -   171 Longitudinal distance between instrument tip and surgical        target    -   172 Numerical model for the virtual bound    -   200 A method for controlling a surgical robotic system    -   210 Receiving positioning commands    -   220 Determining the virtual bound    -   230 Controlling the actuating    -   240 Actuating the movable arm part    -   250 Non-transitory program code    -   260 Computer readable medium

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

FIG. 1 schematically shows a surgical robotic system 100 for use in asurgical procedure. The surgical robotic system 100 comprises a surgicalarm 080. The surgical arm 080 comprises a movable arm part 082, with themovable arm part comprising an instrument connector for mounting of asurgical instrument 119. FIG. 1 shows the surgical instrument 119 havingbeen mounted to the instrument connector (for sake of simplicity, theinstrument connector is not separately shown in FIG. 1). The movable armpart 082 has at least one DoF to enable longitudinal movement of thesurgical instrument towards a surgical target. Here, longitudinalmovement refers to a movement of the surgical instrument 119 along itslongitudinal axis (for sake of simplicity, the longitudinal axis is notseparately shown in FIG. 1).

The surgical robotic system 100 further comprises a human machineinterface 020 for receiving positioning commands 022 from a humanoperator for controlling the longitudinal movement of the surgicalinstrument. Examples of human machine interfaces include, but are notlimited to, a keyboard, a mouse, a touch-sensitive surface, a joystick,a foot pedal. The human machine interface may employ any suitable inputmodality, such as touch, push-actions, voice commands, eye movements,etc. The surgical robotic system 100 further comprises an actuator 060configured and arranged for actuating the movable arm part to effect thelongitudinal movement of the surgical instrument. The actuator 060 maybe any suitable actuator, e.g., from the field of surgical robots, orfrom the more general field of actuators. In particular, the actuatormay be one of a plurality of actuators which together provide theactuation of the movable arm part 060 along the at least onedegree-of-freedom (DoF). Namely, the surgical robotic system 100 maycomprise a plurality of actuators, e.g., to provide actuation alongmultiple DoF. As such, it will be appreciated that any reference to aconfiguration of the actuator 080 may be understood as referring to a(joint) configuration of such a plurality of actuators. FIG. 1 shows theactuation of surgical arm 080 schematically, namely as a dashed line062. It is noted that, although shown separately of the surgical arm080, the actuator 060 may be integrated into, or mounted to, thesurgical arm 080.

The surgical robotic system 100 further comprises a processor 040configured for controlling the actuator in accordance with thepositioning commands and a virtual bound. For that purpose, theprocessor 040 is shown to receive the positioning commands 022 from thehuman machine interface 020 and provide actuation commands 042 to theactuator 060. Here, the virtual bound establishes a transition in thecontrol of the longitudinal movement of the surgical instrument in adirection towards the surgical target. The processor 040 may determinethe virtual bound based on the positioning commands during use of thesurgical robotic system 100. Having determined the virtual bound, theprocessor may control the actuator to, e.g., disallow or dampenlongitudinal movement of the surgical instrument towards the surgicaltarget past the virtual bound. However, other uses of the virtual boundare equally conceivable, as will be elucidated in reference to FIGS.16-20.

FIG. 2 shows a surgical instrument 119 passing through a trocar 124during minimally invasive surgery. For example, in case of laparoscopicsurgery, this trocar 124 may be placed in the abdominal or thoracicwall, whereas in case of vitreoretinal surgery, the trocar 124 may beplaced in the sclera. Rotating around and translating through the trocarmay be possible in four DoF, e.g., the rotations ϕ 107, ψ 108, ϑ 110 andthe translation z 109 to approach or penetrate a surgical target 123.Further shown are a tip 122 of the surgical instrument 119 and threeaxes 104-106 of a coordinate system fixed to the instrument tip, with{right arrow over (e)}_(z) 106 aligned with the longitudinal axis of thesurgical instrument 119. Rotations ϕ 107 and ψ 108 may result in alateral displacement of the instrument tip 122, respectively in thedirection {right arrow over (e)}_(y) 105 and in the direction {rightarrow over (e)}_(x) 104. The translation z 109 may result in alongitudinal movement of the surgical instrument tip 122.

The surgical robotic system may be used in a minimally invasiveprocedure during minimally invasive surgery such as one of theabovementioned types. FIG. 3 shows a joint diagram illustrating thekinematics of a movable arm part of a surgical arm for use in such aminimally invasive surgery. In the example of FIG. 3, the surgicalrobotic system comprises a surgical arm, with the surgical armcomprising a movable arm part having DoFs Φ 111, Ψ 112, Z 113 and Θ 114,allowing respective instrument motions 107-110, resulting in movementsof the surgical instrument tip 122. The DoFs may be arranged such thatthere is a point on the surgical instrument that does not move in space,termed the Remote Center of Motion (RCM) 125. By moving the base of thesurgical arm, the movable arm part may be positioned, such that its RCM125 may be positioned at the trocar. Respective actuation units may bearranged to effect movement in all four DoFs 111-114.

The surgical robotic system may further comprise a human machineinterface for receiving positioning commands from a human operator. Thehuman machine interface may comprise or be constituted by a motioncontroller such as a joystick. FIG. 4 shows a joint diagram illustratingthe kinematics of such a motion controller. Here, the motion controlleris shown to have DoFs ϕ_(m) 115, ψ_(m) 116, Z_(m) 117 and Θ_(m) 118. Thehuman operator may provide positioning commands by, e.g., holding themotion controller at a gripper part, pressing the button 126, and movingthe gripper part of the motion controller in 3D space.

FIG. 5 shows a joint diagram illustrating the kinematics of a surgicalarm having six revolutionary DoFs, thereby enabling longitudinaltranslation in z movement 109 of the surgical instrument towards asurgical target 123. The surgical robotic system may comprise a surgicalarm with kinematics such that the same four movements are possible asthose of the motion controller shown in FIG. 4. These kinematics neednot contain a translational DoF, but might consist of 6 rotational DoFsin 3D space. 3D space may be indicated by coordinate system axis101-103. Here, the DoFs are not arranged such that an RCM iskinematically constrained as in FIG. 3, but the processor may beconfigured for controlling the actuators of such 6 rotational DoFs so asto reflect the same four movements of the motion controller, i.e.,establishing a software constrained RCM 125, and a longitudinaltranslation z 109 of the surgical instrument towards a surgical target123. In addition, the processor may be configured for controlling thelongitudinal movement 109 of the surgical instrument in accordance withthe virtual bound. It will be appreciated that various other kinematicarrangements for surgical arms are possible which allow longitudinaltranslation of a surgical instrument, e.g., having another number ofDoFs, incorporating, translational, prismatic, spherical joints or anyother joints, etc.

As shown in FIG. 6, the surgical robotic system may also comprise asurgical arm with kinematics which enable longitudinal movement 109 ofthe surgical instrument, but without the DoFs or the processor beingarranged such that an RCM is constrained. Such a surgical robotic systemmay be used in open surgery, where the instrument approaches a surgicaltarget 123 from the outside, e.g., one which is located on a surface ofan exterior of a patient. Here, the kinematics of the surgical arm in 3Dspace are indicated by coordinate system axis 101-103.

FIG. 7 shows a spherical virtual bound 132 being determined by afunction of a furthest positioning of the surgical instrument asestablished by a human operator. Here, the term furthest positioningrefers to a positioning that maximizes a virtual volume having a sizedetermined by the positioning of the surgical instrument. It is notedthat this function may be a linear or a non-linear function. Examples ofa linear function are scaling of the furthest positioning, adding anoffset, or establishing the virtual bound to correspond to the furthestpositioning. An example of a non-linear function is resetting thevirtual bound to its original location, e.g. when the instrument movessufficiently away from the surgical target.

Here, the movable arm part has kinematics such that actuation may bepossible in longitudinal direction 109, aligned with the longitudinalaxis of the surgical instrument, and in at least two non-longitudinaldirections, such as ϕ 107. The translation z 109 may be used forapproaching the surgical target 123 from the outside. The translation z109 may also be used for penetrating the surgical target 123 when theinstrument is in contact with the surgical target 123, and may thereforebe more demanding in terms of precision and steadiness compared to ϕ107. The processor may be configured for establishing a sphericalvirtual bound 132 having a radius R 128 and a center at the RCM 125. Theprocessor may be configured for determining the radius R 128 from thefurthest positioning of the instrument in longitudinal direction 109,e.g., from all past positions of the instrument. In case of a newfurthest position of the surgical instrument as established by the humanoperator, the virtual bound may be expanded 127.

Additionally or alternatively, the processor may be configured for incontrolling the actuator, allowing longitudinal movement 109 of thesurgical instrument towards the surgical target 123 past the virtualbound, subject to a positioning command being of a selected type, andupdating 127 the virtual bound 132 based on a new furthest positioning.As such, the human operator may deliberately move the surgicalinstrument past the virtual bound, namely by providing suitablelongitudinal positioning commands in positive z direction using thehuman machine interface. Here, the term z direction is a direction alongthe longitudinal axis of the surgical instrument, also indicated by theterm longitudinal direction, a positive z direction refers to adirection towards the surgical target 123, and a negative z direction toa direction away from said target. Such positioning commands may beprovided in separation of other types of positioning commands, e.g.,using a different input mode or input modality of the human machineinterface. In particular, such positioning commands may be of a selectedtype in that they cause the virtual bound 132 to be expanded byincreasing the radius R 128.

FIG. 8 is similar to FIG. 7 but illustrates the use of a sphericalvirtual bound 132 with radius R 128, that is updated 127 based onpositioning commands during minimally invasive surgery in a cavity of anorgan in an interior of the patient. Here, the surgical instrument movesin z 109 and ϕ 107 directions, through the wall of the organ at the RCM125, approaching the inside of a cavity in a (hollow) organ as thesurgical target 123.

As shown in FIG. 9, the virtual bound may also be a planar virtual bound132, lying at a distance L 129, and with a preprogrammed orientation.The instrument may move in non-longitudinal direction 107 and inlongitudinal direction z 109 to approach the surgical target 123. Theprocessor may be configured to update 127 the distance L 129 such thatall past instrument positions lie on the same side of the planar virtualbound 132 as the RCM 125.

It is noted that besides the virtual bound having a planar or sphericalshape, many other surfaces and shapes may be used as virtual bound.Moreover, the virtual bound may be used in combination with any suitablekinematic arrangement of the surgical arm.

FIG. 10 illustrates the use of a spherical virtual bound during eyesurgery. The surgical instrument may move in longitudinal direction z109 and in non-longitudinal direction ϕ 107. A spherical virtual boundis used with its center placed on the ϕ=0 line 130 and passing throughthe RCM 125. The radius of the spherical virtual bound may be updated bythe processor, such that the spherical virtual bound comprises allprevious instrument tip positions. Such configuration may be used forsurgery at the inside of a hollow organ, such as eye surgery. FIG. 10considers the case where the instrument penetrates the eye wall at theRCM 125. On responsibility of the human operator, the surgicalinstrument may be moved, namely by providing suitable positioningcommands to the human machine interface. The position of the instrumenttip at time t₁ 136 is at the virtual bound 133, which has radius R₁ att₁ 162, and is moved in positive longitudinal direction z 109. Byproviding positioning commands of a selected type, the spherical virtualbound 133 may be enlarged 127 such that the instrument tip remainsinside the spherical virtual bound. At time t₂, the human operator mayvisually confirm, e.g., using a microscope 131, that the instrument tip137 is in (close) contact with the tissue on the inside of the eye. Thehuman operator may not want to damage this tissue 123, and therefore maynot advance or penetrate any further. Accordingly, the spherical virtualbound at time t₂ 134 with radius R₂ 163 may define zone A and zone B 143within the eye. The position of the instrument tip at time t₃ 138 may bewithin zone A, and the virtual bound 134, 135 may therefore not beupdated.

In general, the virtual bound may be established under responsibilityand visual observation of the human operator. The processor may beconfigured for processing the positioning commands based on (thedistance to) this bound. For example, zone A may be treated as a saferegion, or a high-performance region within the eye, whereas zone B maybe treated as a low-speed, high-precision region near delicate tissue.

FIG. 11 shows the virtual bound being determined by an ellipsoid beingfitted to multiple data points representing instrument positioningcoordinates. Such instrument positioning coordinates may be represented,directly or indirectly, by the positioning commands provided by thehuman operator. As such, the processor may be configured for obtainingdata points that represent the furthest instrument positioningcoordinates on a grid distributed in space. In the previous figures, loworder geometries, such as a plane or sphere, were used for the virtualbound defining zone A and B. However, also higher order shapes may beused, for example when it may be desirable to more accurately describethe geometry of a surgical target. During surgery, more data points maybe obtained, e.g., when the instrument tip is moved to a differentregion, under responsibility and visual observation of the humanoperator. The surgical instrument may enter the eye at the RCM 125,therefore the coordinates (0,0,0) may be available as a data point.Using these data points, a virtual bound may be constructed, e.g., basedon algebraic geometry or a numerical model. In the former case, the datapoints 120 may be used to fit a higher order algebraic geometry for thevirtual bound 121, in 3D space 101-103. The algorithm used for fittingmay minimize the volume of the geometry while enclosing all data points.As such, in the example of FIG. 11, an ellipsoid geometry may be chosen,since it may describe the eye's inner surface better than a sphere.

To fit a higher order algebraic geometry on a set of data points, alarge number of data points may be desired. However, in case of aninsufficient number of data points, geometry assumptions may not becorrect and the fitting algorithm may encounter numerical difficulties.As an alternative, a numerical model for the virtual bound may beobtained by connecting multiple data points, as shown in FIG. 12.Namely, the data points 120 may be connected and interpolated to obtaina free-form surface in 3D space 101-103. In case the inner surface ofthe organ is non-convex, the volume 172 (zone A) may intersect thevolume of the surgical target 123 in-between data points, when thesedata points are connected with straight lines. To avoid suchintersection, more data points may be used on a finer grid, certain datapoints may be omitted or arcs (curving inwards) may be used to connectthe data points. In this respect, it is noted that connecting the datapoint representing the RCM 125 to other data points with a straight lineis allowed in case the surgical instrument is straight.

FIG. 13 illustrates the virtual bound being moved or expanded in astep-wise manner. Here, the movable arm part has the same kinematics z109 and ϕ 107 and spherical virtual bound as in FIG. 7, but the virtualbound 133 may be incrementally expanded, e.g., with 50 μm 151, to obtainthe new virtual bound 134. For that purpose, a different input mode orinput modality may be used than for providing the positioning commands,e.g., using a foot pedal, a button, a touch-screen interface, etc. Thisapproach of incrementally displacing, expanding or deforming the virtualbound, relative to the current bound position, size or shape, based oninput provided through the human machine interface, may besuper-positioned to the approach for determining the virtual bound basedon the positioning commands, e.g., based on a furthest positioningestablished by the human operator. The human machine interface may alsoenable the human operator to displace the virtual bound relative to thecurrent position of the instrument tip, instead of relative to thecurrent virtual bound position. For example, by using a ‘reset bound’button, the bound may be set to coincide with the current instrument tiplocation, or by using a second button, the virtual bound may be set to apredefined distance, e.g., 1 mm, from the instrument tip, in az-direction 109 towards or from the surgical target 123.

FIGS. 14 and 15 relate to the human machine interface optionallycomprising a motion controller having at least one DoF for enabling thehuman operator to provide the positioning commands by operating themotion controller within a workspace. The motion controller may beoperable in a positioning mode in which the positioning commands aredetermined by a displacement of the motion controller within theworkspace. The motion controller may also be operable in a velocity modein which a positioning of the motion controller within a predeterminedzone within the workspace is deemed to indicate a desired velocity, withthe positioning commands being determined in accordance with the desiredvelocity. Here, the motion controller may have a translational DoF Z_(m)117, aligned with the longitudinal axis, and non-longitudinal DoFs, suchas Φ_(m) 115 of FIG. 4.

FIG. 14 illustrates the positioning mode and FIG. 15 the velocity mode.

In the positioning mode of FIG. 14, the human operator may grab themotion controller 147 at the gripper part 149, and move it over adistance within its workspace, e.g., from position at time t₁ 147 to theposition at time t₂ 148. The positioning command for the surgicalinstrument displacement x_(s) 153 may be determined by the motioncontroller displacement x_(m) 152, using the relation x_(s)=αx_(m),where α is a (variable) scaling factor. This may result in an instrumentmovement from position 136 to position 137 with respect to the surgicaltarget 123. In surgical procedures, a high precision may be desired,e.g., α<<1

In the velocity mode of FIG. 15, the motion controller 146 may be pushed157 past a boundary in its workspace 156, termed the velocity modeboundary 154, to generate a desired surgical instrument velocity v_(s)164. The velocity may be a constant, or a function of the amount ofdisplacement past the velocity mode boundary 154. The velocity may alsobe scaled with the (variable) scaling factor α, similarly to thepositioning mode. The positioning command x_(s) for the surgicalinstrument 119 for a new sample may be obtained by x_(s)=x_(s)+v_(s)·dT, where x _(s) is the positioning command from the previoussample, and dT is the time between samples.

It is noted that when the human operator wants to move the instrumenttip over a large distance in positioning mode, especially in case of asmall scaling factor α, the human operator may need to displace themotion controller 146 over a relatively long distance within theworkspace 156. This may not be possible due to the limited size of themotion controller workspace 156. Moreover, the motion controller 146 maynot be in a comfortable position for the human operator when it is movedto outer positions its workspace 156. The human operator may decouplethe link between the movable arm part that holds the instrument and themotion controller, e.g. by releasing button 126. In decoupled mode, theinstrument may stay at a fixed position, while the human operator maymove the motion controller freely in its workspace, e.g. back to acomfortable position. Accordingly, to cover large distances inpositioning mode, the human operator may use the technique of repeatedlycoupling/decoupling: the human operator moves the motion controller inone direction while in coupled mode (button pressed) and in the otherdirection while in decoupled mode (button released).

The velocity mode may be more suitable to cover larger distances. Thesurgical instrument may move at a constant speed while the motioncontroller is kept stationary at the velocity mode boundary 154.Therefore, advantages of the velocity mode may include decreased userfatigue and faster task completion. However, the positioning mode may besafer than the velocity mode, because the human operator has topurposely move the motion controller to move the surgical instrument.Accordingly, the positioning commands provided in the velocity mode maybe considered by the processor not to be of the selected type so as todisallow longitudinal movement of the surgical instrument towards thesurgical target 123 past the virtual bound when the motion controlleroperates in the velocity mode. The processor may allow or disallowcommands provided in the positioning mode or in the velocity mode, as afunction of the virtual bound.

FIG. 16 illustrates this functionality, with the surgical instrumentmoving in z 109 and ϕ 107 around the RCM 125. Here, the sphericalvirtual bound 132 may be established as a linear or nonlinear functionof previous furthest positions of the instrument tip at time t₁. Thisfunction may be a small offset in negative z-direction, e.g. 2 mm. Theinstrument at time t₂ 137 may be at a longitudinal distance 166 from thevirtual bound. When the instrument tip moves from zone A past thisvirtual bound 132 into zone B 140, positioning commands provided in thevelocity mode in the positive z-direction may be disallowed so as todisallow longitudinal movement of the surgical instrument towards thesurgical target 123, whereas in the negative z-direction, they may beallowed. Positioning commands provided in the positioning mode may beallowed in zone B 140. This may be beneficial in that zone B 140 may beregarded as a low-speed, dangerous region near delicate tissue; hencethe positioning mode may be more suitable. However, when the distance166 is larger than zero, the human operator may use the velocity mode toquickly advance towards the virtual bound 132. In accordance with theabove, the surgical instrument may then automatically stop at thevirtual bound 132, because the velocity mode may not be allowed past thevirtual bound.

FIGS. 17-19 relate to the following. The processor may be configured forprocessing the positioning commands based on the virtual bound to obtainprocessed positioning commands, and using processed positioning commandsin controlling the actuator. For example, the processing may compriseone or more of the group of: applying a scaling function, and applying afrequency filter, to the positioning commands. FIG. 17 shows the virtualbound being used in a scaling function. Here, the distance from theinstrument tip to the virtual bound 132 may be used for the basis of ascaling function to determine the position scaling factor α, e.g., ofthe shape displayed in FIG. 17. This scaling function for α 167 may berelatively high when the position z 109 is in-between the RCM 125 andthe virtual bound 132, resulting in fast instrument movements. When theinstrument tip passes the virtual bound 132, a step in the scaling mayoccur, to a relatively low value for a, resulting in slower, moreprecise instrument movements. Alternatively, a smooth transition may beimplemented. However, an advantage of a step may be that the humanoperator notices the passing of virtual bound 132, e.g., by observingthe sudden slower instrument movement.

FIG. 18 shows the virtual bound being used in a function that determinesthe desired instrument velocity in a velocity mode of the motioncontroller. Here, another scaling function is shown. This scalingfunction 168 may be used to determine the desired surgical instrumentvelocity v_(s) 164, in the velocity mode. In accordance with the scalingfunction, when the instrument tip is not deep inside the eye, thedesired velocity v_(s) is large, resulting in fast surgical instrumentmovements. When moving in z-direction 109 inside the eye, towards thevirtual bound 132, v_(s) is decreased as a function of the distance 166.When the instrument tip moves past the bound 132, v_(s) is decreased bya large step.

FIG. 19 shows the virtual bound being used in a frequency filter. Here,another scaling function is shown, as a function of the longitudinalposition z 109. This function may be used to determine the cut-offfrequency 169 in a frequency filter that passes low frequencies andreduces the amplitude of signals with frequencies past this cut-offfrequency 169. This frequency filter may be applied to the motion inputsignal x_(m) 152, provided by the human operator, through the motioncontroller, to filter the human operator's hand tremor. In the exampleof FIG. 19, the cut-off frequency 169 decreases from 4 to 2 Hz, when theinstrument approaches the virtual bound 132, resulting in smoother andslower instrument motions. When the instrument tip passes the virtualbound 132, a step decrease to 0.5 Hz occurs, being a convenient settingfor delicate surgery, e.g., to the retina.

FIG. 20 shows the surgical instrument being retracted in longitudinaldirection when non-longitudinal movement 107 of the instrument causesthe instrument to arrive at the virtual bound. Here, the processor maybe configured such that zone B 140 is regarded as a blocked zone. Assuch, longitudinal instrument penetration z 109 into zone B 140 may bedisallowed. The human operator may move the instrument freely in zone A,but when the human operator provides a positioning command that wouldresult in an instrument movement past the virtual bound 132, thepositioning commands may be processed such that the instrument does notpass the virtual bound. This approach may be used to prevent accidentaldamage to delicate tissue 123 However, when observing the instrument tipand the delicate tissue, e.g., through a microscope, the human operatormay purposely incrementally move the virtual bound, e.g., as describedwith reference to FIG. 13 by pressing a foot pedal. This may enable thehuman operator to carefully advance or penetrate further in z direction,in a very controlled and defined manner. It is noted that in general,the human machine interface might provide means to disregard the virtualbound, e.g., a specific input mode or input modality, and continue freepositioning of the instrument, including penetration in z direction.

However, as shown in FIG. 20, the instrument may also move into zone Bby a non-longitudinal movement 107. In such cases where the virtualbound is a plane or contour in 3D, the processor may be configured forcontrolling the actuator to retract the surgical instrument causing thesurgical instrument to arrive at the plane or the contour. In theexample of FIG. 20, the instrument tip position at time t₁ 136 is inzone A 139, but it is moving towards zone B because the human operatoris providing positioning commands in the direction ϕ 107. Becausemovement into zone B may be disallowed, the positioning commands for zmay be processed such that the instrument may move along the virtualbound 132. Effectively, by suitably retracting the surgical instrument,the instrument tip position at time t₂ 137 may be corrected in zdirection over a distance 170, such that movement of the surgicalinstrument into zone B, towards, or further into the surgical target123, is avoided.

FIG. 21 shows the virtual bound being repositioned, expanded ordeformed, based on sensor data indicating a distance to the surgicaltarget. Here, the virtual bound 133 may be established by a previousfurthest positioning of the instrument tip at time t₁ 136. However, thevirtual bound does not coincide with the surgical target 123, being inthis case the retina on the inside of an eye. A reason for this may bethat the surgical target may have been rotated, moved or deformed, orthe shape of the virtual bound is not representing the organ's geometrycorrectly. However, the surgical robotic system may comprise a sensorinside or outside the eye which measures the longitudinal distance 171between the instrument tip 137 and the surgical target. The sensor mayobtain measurement data points, similar to those described withreference to FIGS. 11 and 12. The sensor data may be used to update thevirtual bound such that the virtual bound at time t₂ 134 coincides withthe surgical target 123. This updating may comprise repositioning,expansion or deformation of the virtual bound.

The longitudinal distance 171 may be measured indirectly, by a sensoroutside the eye such as a camera or an optical coherence tomographydevice mounted on a microscope 131, with a view on the surgical targetand the surgical instrument tip 137, through the pupil. Indirectmeasurement may also be done by a sensor in the eye, mounted on anotherinstrument or positioned in the eye by other means. The longitudinaldistance 171 may also be measured directly, by a sensor added to thesurgical instrument and measuring along the z-direction 109. The sensormay be a non-contact distance sensor providing optical coherencetomography through an optical fiber, integrated in or attached to thesurgical axis. However, this is not a limitation, in that also othernon-contact distance sensors may be used, e.g., based on other opticalprinciples, or sensors based on acoustical or electrical principles. Ingeneral, such types of distance sensor may provide an output, i.e.,sensor data, proportional to the distance over a certain range ofpositions.

Additionally or alternatively, a proximity switch sensor may be used.Here, the distance 171 is not measured over a range, but the presence ofthe surgical target within a position threshold is detected, e.g., at adistance of 0.1 mm. If the threshold is 0 mm, the sensor acts as acontact/no-contact sensor. The coordinates of the instrument tip may nowbe a measure of the surgical target position. Having obtained thesesensor data, the processor may update or replace the virtual bound 132.

It is noted that, in updating or replacing the virtual bound based onsensor data, more samples may be used than only the current sample ofthe sensor data. Namely, due to possible noise and uncertainty in thisdata, also previous samples of sensor data may be used, and/or previouspositions of the virtual bound position. For example, the virtual boundmay be updated using a Kalman filter to account for noise anduncertainty in the sensor data.

FIG. 22 schematically illustrates a method 200 for controlling asurgical robotic system during use in a surgical procedure, the surgicalrobotic system comprising a surgical arm, the surgical arm comprising amovable arm part, the movable arm part comprising an instrumentconnector for mounting of a surgical instrument, the surgical instrumenthaving a longitudinal axis, the movable arm part having at least one DoFto enable longitudinal movement of the surgical instrument along thelongitudinal axis of the surgical instrument towards a surgical target.The method 200 comprises, in an operation titled “RECEIVING POSITIONINGCOMMANDS”, receiving 210 positioning commands from a human operator forcontrolling the longitudinal movement of the surgical instrument. Themethod 200 further comprises, in an operation titled “ACTUATING MOVABLEARM PART”, actuating 240 the movable arm part to effect the longitudinalmovement of the surgical instrument. The method 200 further comprises,in an operation titled “CONTROLLING THE ACTUATING”, controlling 230 saidactuating in accordance with the positioning commands and a virtualbound, the virtual bound establishing a transition in the control of thelongitudinal movement of the surgical instrument in a direction towardsthe surgical target. The method 200 further comprises, in an operationtitled “DETERMINING VIRTUAL BOUND”, during use of the surgical roboticsystem in the surgical procedure, determining 220 the virtual boundbased on the positioning commands. It is noted that the operations ofthe method 200 may be performed in any suitable order. The method 200may be performed iteratively.

The method according to the invention may be implemented on a processoras a computer implemented method, or in dedicated hardware, or in acombination of both. Executable code for a method according to theinvention may be stored on a computer program product. Examples ofcomputer program products include memory devices, optical storagedevices, integrated circuits, servers, online software, etc. FIG. 23shows a computer program product in the form of an computer readablemedium 260 which comprises non-transitory program code 250 for causing aprocessor to perform a method according to the invention when saidprogram code is executed the processor.

In a preferred embodiment, the computer program comprises computerprogram code means adapted to perform all the steps of a methodaccording to the invention when the computer program is executed by aprocessor. Preferably, the computer program is embodied on a computerreadable medium.

It should be noted that the above-mentioned embodiments illustraterather than limit the invention, and that those skilled in the art willbe able to design many alternative embodiments.

In the claims or clauses, any reference signs placed between parenthesesshall not be construed as limiting the claim or clause. Use of the verb“comprise” and its conjugations does not exclude the presence ofelements or steps other than those stated in a claim or clause. Thearticle “a” or “an” preceding an element does not exclude the presenceof a plurality of such elements. The invention may be implemented bymeans of hardware comprising several distinct elements, and by means ofa suitably programmed computer. In the device claim or clauseenumerating several means, several of these means may be embodied by oneand the same item of hardware. The mere fact that certain measures arerecited in mutually different dependent claims or clauses does notindicate that a combination of these measures cannot be used toadvantage.

The invention claimed is:
 1. A surgical robotic system for use in asurgical procedure, comprising: a surgical arm including a movable armpart, the movable arm part including an instrument connector formounting of a surgical instrument, the surgical instrument having alongitudinal axis, the movable arm part having at least onedegree-of-freedom to enable longitudinal movement of the surgicalinstrument along the longitudinal axis of the surgical instrumenttowards a surgical target; a human machine interface for receiving,using a first input modality or input mode of the human machineinterface, positioning commands from a human operator for controllingthe longitudinal movement of the surgical instrument; an actuatorconfigured and arranged for actuating the movable arm part to effect thelongitudinal movement of the surgical instrument; a processor configuredfor controlling the actuator in accordance with the positioning commandsand a virtual bound, the virtual bound establishing a transition in thecontrol of the longitudinal movement of the surgical instrument in adirection towards the surgical target, and wherein the processor isfurther configured for, during use, determining the virtual bound basedon the positioning commands; wherein the human machine interfaceincludes a further input modality or input mode which, when used by thehuman operator during the surgical procedure, causes: the virtual boundto be set to coincide with, or to be at a predefined distance from, acurrent instrument tip location as indicated by the positioningcommands; and the virtual bound to be incrementally displaced orexpanded relative to a current virtual bound.
 2. The surgical roboticsystem according to claim 1, wherein the human machine interfaceincludes a button for said setting of the virtual bound, and a footpedal for said incrementally displacing or expanding the virtual bound.3. The surgical robotic system according to claim 2, and configured foreye surgery, wherein the virtual bound is spherical or an ellipsoid. 4.The surgical robotic system according to claim 1, and configured for eyesurgery, wherein the virtual bound is spherical or an ellipsoid.
 5. Thesurgical robotic system according to claim 1, wherein the processor isconfigured for controlling the actuator to disallow longitudinalmovement of the surgical instrument towards the surgical target past thevirtual bound.
 6. The surgical robotic system according to claim 5,wherein the processor is configured for determining the virtual boundbased on a furthest positioning of the surgical instrument asestablished by the human operator.
 7. The surgical robotic systemaccording to claim 1, wherein the processor is configured fordetermining the virtual bound based on a furthest positioning of thesurgical instrument as established by the human operator.
 8. Thesurgical robotic system according to claim 1, wherein the processor isconfigured for i) in controlling the actuator, allowing longitudinalmovement of the surgical instrument towards the surgical target past thevirtual bound, subject to a positioning command being of a selectedtype, and ii) updating the virtual bound based on a new furthestpositioning.
 9. The surgical robotic system according to claim 8,wherein the human machine interface is configured for enabling the humanoperator to provide the positioning command of the selected type inseparation of other types of positioning commands.
 10. The surgicalrobotic system according to claim 9, wherein the human machine interfaceincludes different input modalities or different input modes to enablethe human operator to provide the positioning command of the selectedtype in separation of the other types of positioning commands byoperating different ones of the input modalities or by using differentones of the input modes.
 11. The surgical robotic system according toclaim 10, wherein the human machine interface includes a motioncontroller having at least one degree-of-freedom for enabling the humanoperator to provide the positioning commands by operating the motioncontroller within a workspace, the motion controller being operable in:a positioning mode in which the positioning commands are determined by adisplacement of the motion controller within the workspace; and/or avelocity mode in which a positioning of the motion controller within apredetermined zone within the workspace is deemed to indicate a desiredvelocity, with the positioning commands being determined in accordancewith the desired velocity; and wherein the positioning commands providedin the velocity mode are not of the selected type so as to disallowlongitudinal movement of the surgical instrument towards the surgicaltarget past the virtual bound when the motion controller operates in thevelocity mode.
 12. The surgical robotic system according to claim 9,wherein the human machine interface includes a motion controller havingat least one degree-of-freedom for enabling the human operator toprovide the positioning commands by operating the motion controllerwithin a workspace, the motion controller being operable in: apositioning mode in which the positioning commands are determined by adisplacement of the motion controller within the workspace; and/or avelocity mode in which a positioning of the motion controller within apredetermined zone within the workspace is deemed to indicate a desiredvelocity, with the positioning commands being determined in accordancewith the desired velocity; and wherein the positioning commands providedin the velocity mode are not of the selected type so as to disallowlongitudinal movement of the surgical instrument towards the surgicaltarget past the virtual bound when the motion controller operates in thevelocity mode.
 13. The surgical robotic system according to 8, whereinthe human machine interface includes a motion controller having at leastone degree-of-freedom for enabling the human operator to provide thepositioning commands by operating the motion controller within aworkspace, the motion controller being operable in: a positioning modein which the positioning commands are determined by a displacement ofthe motion controller within the workspace; and/or a velocity mode inwhich a positioning of the motion controller within a predetermined zonewithin the workspace is deemed to indicate a desired velocity, with thepositioning commands being determined in accordance with the desiredvelocity; and wherein the positioning commands provided in the velocitymode are not of the selected type so as to disallow longitudinalmovement of the surgical instrument towards the surgical target past thevirtual bound when the motion controller operates in the velocity mode.14. The surgical robotic system according to claim 1, wherein theprocessor is configured for i) processing the positioning commands basedon the virtual bound to obtain processed positioning commands, and ii)using processed positioning commands in controlling the actuator. 15.The surgical robotic system according to claim 14, wherein theprocessing includes one or more of the group of: applying a scalingfunction, and applying a frequency filter, to the positioning commands.16. The surgical robotic system according to claim 1, wherein thevirtual bound is a plane or contour in three-dimensional physical space,and wherein the processor is configured for controlling the actuator toretract the surgical instrument when non-longitudinal movement of thesurgical instrument causes the surgical instrument to arrive at theplane or the contour.
 17. The surgical robotic system according to claim1, wherein the surgical instrument includes a sensor for providingsensor data, the sensor data being indicative of a distance between atip of the surgical instrument and an anatomical structure, and whereinthe processor is configured for determining the virtual bound furtherbased on the sensor data.
 18. The surgical robotic system according toclaim 17, wherein the processor is configured for updating or replacingthe virtual bound based on the distance to the anatomical structure asindicated by the sensor data.
 19. The surgical robotic system accordingto claim 1, wherein the processor is configured for controlling theactuator to always allow longitudinal movement of the surgicalinstrument away from the surgical target.
 20. A method for controlling asurgical robotic system during use in a surgical procedure, the surgicalrobotic system including a surgical arm, the surgical arm including amovable arm part, the movable arm part including an instrument connectorfor mounting of a surgical instrument, the surgical instrument having alongitudinal axis, the movable arm part having at least onedegree-of-freedom to enable longitudinal movement of the surgicalinstrument along the longitudinal axis of the surgical instrumenttowards a surgical target, the method comprising: receiving positioningcommands from a human operator for controlling the longitudinal movementof the surgical instrument; actuating the movable arm part to effect thelongitudinal movement of the surgical instrument; controlling saidactuating in accordance with the positioning commands and a virtualbound, the virtual bound establishing a transition in the control of thelongitudinal movement of the surgical instrument in a direction towardsthe surgical target; the method further comprising: during use of thesurgical robotic system in the surgical procedure, determining thevirtual bound based on the positioning commands.
 21. A computer readablemedium, comprising: non-transitory data representing instructions forcausing a processor system to perform the method according to claim 20.